Honestly when we were assigned our first However, those research - - PDF document

BIOL 215 Aquatic ecosystems project 1

Term Project

Ecological investigation of an aquatic ecosystem

Skyline Students Say

Honestly when we were assigned our first research project for BIOL 215 I was not really excited to spend extra time in the lab outside of the regular class schedule….

“

Skyline Students Say

However, those research projects turned

• ut to be some of the most valuable

experiences I’ve had in my undergraduate education. UC Davis

“ ”

1962 1970s Environmental Movement 2000s Biodiversity 2000s Biodiversity 2016 Biodiversity

National Microbiome Initiative To foster the integrated study of microbiomes across different ecosystems Microbiomes are the communities of microorganisms that live on or in people, plants, soil, oceans, and the atmosphere. Microbiomes maintain healthy function of these diverse ecosystems, influencing human health, climate change, food security, and other factors.

www.whitehouse.gov

BIOL 215 Aquatic ecosystems project 2

Purpose

You will be able to:

• Use scientific literature
• Evaluate & summarize scientific info.
• Study ecology
• Work cooperatively (group of 2)

The Assignment

Online at skylinecollege.edu/case. Click on BIOL 215 >Term project. Teams of two students.

The Assignment

• Six (max.) content pages. One report/team.
• Background
• Materials & methods
• Results
• Discussion
• Literature cited page. Include 6 references in correct format. (6)

You must use at least 3 journal articles; all references may not be books and websites. References must be cited somewhere in the content. Do not include references prior to 1980.

• Three figures on three separate pages.

a Each figure must have a legend.

• b. Refer to each figure in the body of the text.
• c. Figures can include (one) photograph or picture of the animal;

food chain, phylogenetic tree, calculations, graphs. (9).

Species diversity

• a. Background. A review of literature on some aspect
• f aquatic microecosystems. Put everything in your
• wn words with the proper citation in parentheses:

do not quote directly from other works (1).

Background

Select a background topic (skylinecollege.edu/case) Review of literature

• journal articles
• Individual report on one article due…Oct 4

References

• Articles from peer reviewed scientific journals.
• Internet references must be from academic

sources only. No: Wikis, encylopedia, dictionaries, textbooks, or search engines.

• Google search, Gale, Skyline College, and
• ther search engines are not citations.
• All citations must be in the proper format. See

the Style Sheet (BIOL 215 web site)

References

• To get started…each student reads one

article for Journal Assignment

– Due…Oct. 4

• Final project report needs at least 6 refs.

Species diversity

• b. Lab Observations.
• Lecture must be accompanied by a lab

session plus 16 lab hours by arrangement.

• Log in/out (equipment room)

BIOL 215 Aquatic ecosystems project 3

Species diversity

• b. Materials & Methods..
• Natural water/mud sample
• Visit your sample site

Species diversity

• b. Materials & Methods.

Species diversity

• b. Microscopes
• Stereo

Species diversity

• b. Microscopes
• Stereo
• Compound upright

Species diversity

• b. Microscopes
• Stereo
• Compound upright
• Compound inverted

Species diversity

• b. Microscopes
• Stereo
• Compound upright
• Compound inverted

Cover

What happens if you leave the lid on during observations? Species diversity

• b. Materials & Methods.
• Wiki log. Weekly observations.

Species diversity

• b. Materials & Methods.
• Wiki log. Weekly observations.

16 lab hours by arrangement. Equipment room (Scheduling And Reporting System) log in/out

BIOL 215 Aquatic ecosystems project 4

Species diversity

• b. Materials & Methods.
• Wiki log. Weekly observations.
• Organisms present
• Numbers
• Maintenance
• Replace evaporation every three days!!!!!
• Behaviors
• Motility
• Location

Species diversity

• c. Results.
• a. Tables summarizing observations you have

posted in your log. (No raw data in report.)

• b. Graph(s) of population changes. A minimum of
• ne graph is required.

Species diversity Species diversity Species diversity

• d. Discussion.

i. An in-depth discussion on at least one of the

• rganisms you observed.
• ii. Discuss the changes that occurred in your

MicroAquarium over the past nine weeks. Note factors that might have influenced these changes.

• iii. Compare your results with those of a different

sample.

Species diversity

Ostracods are crustaceans protected by two hinged valves (Figure 1). The animals is about 5 mm long… Figure 1. Ostracod. (a) As seen in microaquarium. (b) Internal anatomy (2)

Who will you meet?

A tardigrade Developing eggs…

Who will you meet?

Developing eggs of

Literature Cited

1. Murdock, P. et al. (2000). Potential effects of climate change on surface water quality in North America. Journal of the American Water Resources Association, 36.2: 347-366. 2. The Smallest Page on Earth. (n.d.). www.microscopy- uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html?http://www.microscop y-uk.org.uk/mag/wimsmall/smal1.html. Accessed

• Sept. 9, 2019.

3.

• J. Byrnes , P. Reynolds, and J. Stachowicz. (2007).

Invasions and extinctions reshape coastal marine food webs. PLoS One, 2(3): e295. dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0000295.

BIOL 215 Aquatic ecosystems project 5

Due dates

• Individual

– First Journal article…Oct 4 – Plankton data…Nov1

• Group (2 students)

– Regular wiki entries...Canvas – Graded throughout semester, starting this week.

• Final report (one per group)

– Nov 27

• Can I feed my microaquarium now?

Eutrophication Eutrophication Discharge Eutrophication

Decomposers O2

Biochemical Oxygen Demand

Decomposers

BIOL 215 Aquatic ecosystems project 6

• Can I feed my microaquarium now?
• NO!!!!!
• In a month or so, once:

≤0.01 g ground wheat seed